Cruel Lives
by girlofeverycolor
Summary: A 30 day writing challenge made up of short fic-lets focusing solely on the canon characters of Bleach. Day Five: Heart of a God. Character Focus: Sosuke Aizen.
1. Yumichika Ayasegawa

**A/N:** This will be the only time I mention this. I do not own Bleach.

I've decided to do a 30 Day Writing Challenge. Each day I'll post a short fic-let about a character or a few characters inspired by a single word. Rules- One: I will use the word in the title and can either use in the story, or if I really want to try things, not use it at all. Two: I cannot go over 2,000 words. Three: I must put my iTunes on shuffle and write with the first song that is played. Would anyone else like to do this with me?

Song: Dirty Paws by Of Monsters and Men.

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><p>A Hero's Mission<p>

There was a certain fondness to the way that the men of the division addressed Yumichika. Beneath all of the teasing and taunts that they had begun with decades ago, it had evened out into mutual respect. They saw him as something more than a man who cared about his appearance. A man who used words like 'elegant' and 'beautiful' on a day-to-day basis but fought better than any of them.

The hazing had originally began as nasty messages left amongst his things, from the ones who were less bold, to snide comments under their breath, to spreading rumors about Yumichika's habits outside of the public eye. Dirty, nasty rumors that I knew were false, but few men listen to the friends of their targets. It was something that we stood side by side through. He never once complained, or showed any weakness, even when I knew their words and actions must be grinding on him.

Of course he tried to deny what they said and their pranks they pulled, trying to defend himself, but the torment continued anyway, and eventually he became silent.

Even though fewer words came from his mouth, his shoulders had squared, his head held high, and he showed more of himself than before. It wasn't a hero's mission, but eventually, when they saw that they couldn't break him and that he was stronger than their combined efforts to bring him down, their respect was earned.


	2. Retsu Unohana

**A/N:** Song: 24 by Jem. Word: Ash. Character: Retsu Unohana. **SPOILERS **for anyone who has not read into the Thousand Year Blood War. Spoilers on her character, at least.

This one gave me the go-around. It took me a couple times to get what I wanted to say out. I think it turned out well, though. If you like what you read, please leave me a little note in the comments box below!

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><p>Time Turned to Ash<p>

The passing of time is an interesting thing.

You can't measure it. Not really. Historians try, but all they really get is what days have passed, only noted by the rising and the setting of the sun every so often. A day, they call this. After awhile, so many days equal a year, so many years equal a century, and so on.

How many centuries have come and gone? How many sunsets have swallowed up lives? Erased them from this world only to spit them back out on the other side?

How many spirits have laid their blood before me? To heal and to slay? How many have I caused to be part of this circle of days?

I am the survivor of innumerable decades. How many have disintegrated and blown away like ash on the wind while I stay here, a pillar to the remembrance of their lives. If I do not, who will? Who will remember all the faces that I have seen standing, kneeling, lying, bloodied and desperate for life before me? Who will remember the dead? Only those who out-live them. I am a pillar of time. A showcase of how many incredible centuries have passed and how many remain to pass.

Time turns to ash in my presence. I am a winner of time. But, even I know that eventually winners must loose. One day, I too, will loose and someone else will hold the remembrance of me.

And the cycle of time continues.


	3. Shinji and Hiyori

**_Song_**: Prophecy (Instrumental) by James Dooley. _**Word**_: Teeth. _**Characters**_: Shinji and Hiyori. _**Word Count**_: 1,146

This time I wanted to focus on Shinji and Hiyori, as I thought I could pull something about teeth from them, but when I got the song, Prophecy, I just had to laugh and have fun with it. Looking at all the elements that would be going into this, I knew that there was no way I would be able to pull anything serious out of this ficlet. Maybe next time. Go listen to the song if you've never heard it.

If you like what you read, be sure to leave me a little note in the comments box below! Thank you to _NorthernShinigami _and _Writophrenic_ for your lovely comments!

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><p>Tooth for a Pearl?<p>

In the world of shinigami and hollows, battles raged every day. However, there was one that had been going on for over a century. It was harsher than the Winter War, with more blood spilt than between Soul Society and Aizen's army.

It was between Shinji Hirako and Hiyori Sarugaki, visored of Soul Society and the living world.

x.z.x

It was a sunny day in the Sereitei, one of the first after the long winter. Any shinigami not on a current mission or preparing to travel into the living world for one was finding it hard to stay inside and focus on the necessary documentation that their jobs required. Paperwork, compared to soaking up the warm sun and cool breezes outside seemed like downright torture to many.

The members of the fifth division were no exception.

Originally, it was just a few squad members who had taken the day off, grabbing a grill and some steaks and deciding to take advantage of the good weather. Over the course of the afternoon, more squad members had joined them, bringing forth sake bottles and A1 steak sauce snatched from the living world and other delectable treats.

"Oh, doesn't the weather just look lovely?" Momo Hinamori, lieutenant of the 5th division wondered aloud to herself, her hand cupping her chin and tilting her face towards the open window. She had opened it earlier in hopes that she could enjoy the fresh weather while doing her work. However, the longer the window was open the less paperwork was being done.

"Hmmm?" Shinji Hirako, Captain of 5th division, drew out the sound, turning towards his lieutenant. Even though he worked at his own desk and looked less out the window than his lieutenant, he got even fewer things done than her.

"The weather! It's so _warm_! It just makes you want to be outside, doesn't it?" She shot a smile over at her captain.

"Hm, I guess it is," Shinji mused, finally looking towards the window. Two birds fluttered just beyond the window, twirling around themselves in the light breeze, before disappearing from view.

"Well, this isn't getting done," Momo motioned towards the mess that had spread across her desk. And indeed it was a mess: not a single inch of wood could be seen beneath the mass of papers spread across its surface. "What do you say we go outside and enjoy ourselves, Captain Hirako? At least for a little while."

Shinji looked back towards his lieutenant. She looked so…_hopeful_. He sighed, and nodded, admitting defeat. He wasn't getting anything done anyway. Momo squealed excitedly and led the way outside.

The fifth division was privy to some of the few hills that the Sereitei encompassed, and it was there, on these hills surrounded by trees, that most of the squad had congregated, not a sad or depressed face about them.

Shinji and Momo laid against the grass, Momo shutting her eyes immediately and soaking in the warm rays of light, while Shinji propped himself up with his hands, staring up at the robin's egg blue sky. Just a few light wisps of clouds danced across the sky. There was not a single reminder of the long winter and the war that they had overcome during the past several months.

Shinji felt a smile playing on his lips. _So this is peace_, he thought.

Just as he thought those words, however, a forceful blow hit his face, sending him flying backwards, and throwing him against the trees only to crumple on the ground, clutching his face in pain while blood cascaded through his fingers. As Shinji tried to right himself and figure out what on earth had just hit him, his eyes slowly opened. Through the blood, he saw Hiyori Sarugaki, standing several feet from him where he had been sitting only moments ago and bending down to retrieve something from the ground. That something, he realized as she pulled it back onto her foot, was her shoe.

"What on earth are you doing, Hiyori!" Shinji yelled at the short blonde. Her eyes screamed _fight!_

"I outta ask you the same thing, dumb ass! Didn't you forget something?" Hiyori yelled while crossing her arms, and making the other members of his squad look over at the commotion. By this time, even Momo was sitting up and eyeing the situation. On one hand, she looked concerned for her captain, but on the other hand, anxious not to get in Hiyori's way.

Truth be told, Shinji didn't blame her. Hiyori was a firecracker best left to those who had experience with her. Still, even a hundred years of experience with her still hadn't trained him enough to be prepared for her attacks.

"What did I forget?" Shinji asked, his voice raising as he staggered to his feet. "Tell me! Don't just out of no where hit me with your shoe!"

"Nah, I like this method better! Maybe if ya get hit enough times you'll remember!"

Hiyori ran at him, grabbed a fistful of his short blonde hair and rammed her knee into his stomach, making him double over. His head now at her height, she took the opportunity to slam her head into his.

With this hit, their teeth bumped. Not bumped in the awkward way that a first kiss bumps teeth. No, this teeth bumping sent an earthquake through Shinji's skull, rattling his brain. When he opened his eyes, on the ground before him he saw that one of his pearly whites had been knocked from his mouth.

"Hiyori!" Shinji panicked, gasping. "You just knocked out one of my teeth!"

"Yeah, so? Maybe it'll jog your memory!" She growled.

He clutched at his mouth, blood streaming down his face and his robes. "I have no idea!" He begged.

He turned to Momo, who was at this point, looking disturbed at the scene in front of her. "Momo-chan! Do I look like an idiot?" He smiled painfully, hoping to god that Hiyori hadn't knocked out one of his front teeth.

The poor girl paused, and looked away, blushing.

Shinji deadpanned. So he _did_ look like a dumb ass.

"Think! That'll be a nice present for ya when you remember! Maybe _I'll_ even get it!"

He saw her coming for him again, for whatever reason it was that she was pissed at him, and he ran. As she chased him around the small clearing, steaks being consumed and his squad members rolling with laughter while trying not to choke accidentally on said steaks, he remembered: _present_. Yesterday had been her _birthday_….and he'd forgotten. Of course she was mad.

Maybe he could fashion his tooth into a necklace for her. If he didn't tell her it was a tooth, maybe she would think it was a pearl…?

For now, though, he just needed to get her off his back and stay alive!


	4. Ulquiorra Cifer

**Song**: Showdown in the Ballet Studio by Carter Burwell. **Word**: Bone. **Character**: Ulquiorra Cifer. **Word Count**: 230

As my followers on Twitter (link in my profile), know, when I received this song from the great gods of the shuffle button, I was really wondering how on earth I was going to link these together, but I think it turned out well. I've decided to make this ficlet and tomorrow's ficlet relatable, since this one is Bone and tomorrow's will be Heart. They're also loosely based on Ezekiel and the Valley of Bones from the bible. Although I'm not religious, that's an interesting read.

I did update Beyond the Fading Sun (finally, oh my god) so if you like my stuff here, I _highly_ recommend that one, since I actually put thought into the plot... unlike these ficlets.

Also, shout out to my wonderful real life and author friend, _Graphospasm_! Happy Birthday! (Her work is amazing - go read it!)

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><p>Remnants of Bone<p>

We are like the body, us Arrancar. Lord Aizen is the heart of the body, and we are the bones: the puppets of the body that support the heart.

It's fitting, I assume, that we are. Our broken hollow masks are remnants of bone. They are a reminder of where we have been and what, ultimately, we are. They are the proof that the heart has saved us lowly bones. It was the heart that helped build us up and transformed us into what we are now. How could we not support the heart? How could we not fight for what it stands for? The heart chose us to fight for it.

That is not to say that the heart is that _woman's_ version of the heart. She spits nonsense that I cannot see. If I cannot see it, how could it possibly exist, this heart? A heart that cannot be seen - how foolish.

The heart that we support exists. Like a body, if one was to remove the flesh and look beneath the bones of the chest, there would be the heart, pumping away to support the body and provide life.

That is exactly what Lord Aizen has given us: a life beyond the existence of a hollow. Even bones are not hollow. They are filled with the life of the body that the heart provides.


	5. Sosuke Aizen

**A/N:** I swear I'm not religious. I also swear that I had a better idea for this than what it turned out to be, but this is what happens after a 12 hour work day and trying to stay awake long enough to spin this out. I actually don't know what happened to this, but I'm exhausted. Peace, guys. I'm hitting the sack.

Review! Yay reviews!

**Song**: Blizzard by Two Steps from Hell. **Word**: Heart. **Character Focus**: Sosuke Aizen **Word Count**: 198

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><p>Heart of a God<p>

In the beginning, they say, there was love. It was love that created the first humans and from those humans they, too, loved and spread their seed across the world.

I guess it's fitting that love is 'ai.'

Only a God can see all and only a God can see the truth.

They say that I betrayed my peers, that I betrayed those who followed me in the Gotei. I do not see it that way. I merely saw the truth of the world: I knew that I was born to be a God. A god may control others and they still follow him. A god is all-powerful, creating as he sees fit.

How am I not the perfect match for this idea?

Ideas are like parasites. They feed on you and feed on your soul until they're all consuming of your thoughts and your actions.

They may believe that I betrayed them, but that's a petty notion. I just took a giant leap forward to become what I dreamed I could be.

I am the heart of this machine; fitting, since my name is Aizen. I am the instigator, the driver, the leader of this idea. I truly am a God.


End file.
